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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26162434">The Makings of a Relationship</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/nellybellydavid/pseuds/nellybellydavid'>nellybellydavid</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Chicago Fire</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 02:32:21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,184</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26162434</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/nellybellydavid/pseuds/nellybellydavid</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>You are working in your bakery when a cake order comes in that will forever change your life. Will you end up in a new relationship, or stay single?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Matthew Casey/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>MatthewCasey/Reader</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. A Cake for Change</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is my first work, so go easy on me! This is the beginning of hopefully many stories. Enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Meeting Julia through your business allowed you two to become best friends. Julia thinks it’s time you started dating again, and comes up with a plan.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Chapter 1 A Cake for Change</p><p>It was another busy day with work. Your at home cake decorating business was thriving, and you were bustling through your jobs for the day. You had to put the finishing touches on a cake that would be delivered the next day, make a batch of cupcakes for a 95 year old woman’s birthday party and decorate them and get your inventory done for the next week. You were just finishing up loading your grocery list onto your laptop when a new customer walks through the door.</p><p>”Hi, welcome to y/n’s custom creations! I’m y/n. How can I help you today?” </p><p>The woman that stood before you was very well put together. She had medium length red hair that was pulled back into a braid. She wore a floral dress shirt and mid length pencil skirt with a pair of high heels, and just the right amount of makeup to look put together but still look natural.</p><p>”Hi, my name is Julia Baxter, and I was hoping to get a cake made.” You motion to the dining room table. “Of course! Please have a seat and I will be right with you.” You grab your binder that had pictures of previously made cakes, your notepad and sketchbook and head over to the table.</p><p>”I work in the bull pen at firehouse 51, and our Chief - Chief Boden - is turning 50 years old in a couple of weeks. The guys from truck 81 and squad 3 asked me to get a cake ordered for him as a surprise.”</p><p>You can’t help but smile! You love doing surprise cakes! “That sounds great,” you tell Julia! “Why don’t we go over some ideas for the design, then we can talk about flavours you might want and the size of the cake.”</p><p>It is only 15 minutes later that Julia leaves your house, and you put your latest cake order in your binder of upcoming jobs. Little did you know that making this cake would change your life in ways you never imagined!</p><p>6 months later....</p><p>You and Julia are on the patio of your favourite restaurant, enjoying your cocktails and waiting for your food to come. After Julia ordered that cake for Chief Boden, a friendship grew fast, and soon you were best friends, spending as much time together as you could. Julia was happily married, but her husband was a flight attendant, so he was often gone for days at a time, and you were single, so that meant you both had lots of free evenings to spend together.</p><p>Julia takes a sip of her Margarita and smiles at you. “What is that look for” you question, also with a smile on your face.</p><p>”After all this time, you are still single” she muses. “I know after everything that happened you needed to find yourself again, but don’t you think you’ve waited long enough? Maybe it’s time you put yourself back out there.”</p><p>’Oh great’ you think, ‘we are having THAT conversation.’ “You know I love you,” you say with a smile, “but it’s been so long that I wouldn’t know how to even begin, or whether I’m even ready.”</p><p>Julia smiles a huge beaming smile! “Well you don’t have to worry y/n, I can help you out with that. And maybe I already have!”</p><p>’Great, what now’ you think as you shake your head, grinning.</p><p>“There is this fireman, Matt, and he is single, and has been moping around the firehouse lately. So I set you up on a blind date!”</p><p>The waitress arrives with your food, and you thank her, letting out a sigh. “Julie, I’m not so sure that is a good idea.”</p><p>”Well, that’s too bad,” Julie tells you, “because he already said yes! I know you have Sundays and Mondays off, so I set it up for this Sunday night, leaving you lots of time to get ready, and to recover the next day” she says as she winks.</p><p>As you take your first bites of your chicken, you contemplate the idea of a blind date. It had been a long time since you were with someone, even longer since you went on a date. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to get out, even just for one night. And he did already say yes, you wouldn’t want to be rude and decline after knowing that.</p><p>”Ok Julia, you win. I will commit to this one date, and that’s all for now.” Julia let’s out a huge smile, and leans in for a side hug, giving you a small shake. “You won’t regret this, I promise” she squeals!</p><p>Now you just had to mentally prepare for your first date in a very long time.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>It’s time for your blind date with Matt. Will it be your only date?</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It’s Sunday, the day you promised Julia you would go on a blind date with Matt. It is already noon, and you haven’t had anything to eat yet. Despite trying not to make a big deal of your date, your stomach is filled with butterflies, and you aren’t sure you could stomach a meal right now.</p><p>You haven’t been on a date in so long, so of course you are a bit nervous. Would you know what to say to keep the conversation going? Would he find you funny? Would he find you annoying? Would he find you boring?</p><p>You shake your head, trying to clear your mind for a moment. Taking a deep breath, you decide you should start by picking out your outfit. An hour later, after trying on many things, you settle for what you hope is acceptable first date attire. You have chosen a tight fitting pair of black jeans with tan suede knee length boots, and a mauve purple top with flutter sleeves. You put your dirty blonde curly hair half up with a clip so it doesn’t hang in your face and wear some simple gold dangle earrings. You finish your look with some simple makeup to look more put together, then stand in front of your floor length mirror to get a look at your handiwork.</p><p>It is at that moment that your phone rings, and when you see Julia’s name on the call display, you smile and answer the phone. “Checking up on me, are you?”</p><p>”Hi y/n! Just wanted to make sure you are ok before your big date.” You take a moment to think before you answer. You decide to take a more casual approach to your answer, instead of admitting how nervous you are. If Julia found out how much of a wreck you were she would never let you live it down. </p><p>”Thanks, I’m doing fine. It’s just one date.”</p><p>Julia reminds you for the third time that week that you are meeting Matt at Chicago’s Pizza at 7:00, she made sure he picked somewhere to accommodate your gluten free diet. She then tells you to have fun before saying she has to run and tells you goodbye. You have one hour before you have to leave, so you pick up the remote and tune in to the TV, hoping it will distract you and help calm your mind.</p><p>At 6:55 you walk up to the door of Chicago’s Pizza, and are greeted by a friendly waitress. “Table for one?” </p><p>”Actually I’m meeting someone. It’s for a blind date, so I’m not even sure what he looks like” you admit.</p><p>The waitress smiles, and points to the table in the corner. “That is the table you want right there, he’s been here for 20 minutes already, and looks like he’s trying to not be nervous.”</p><p>”Thanks”, you say as you make you way over to the table.</p><p>Matt fidgets with the hem of his shirt, when he feels eyes are looking at him. He glances up to see you walking towards him, and a smile instantly hits his face.</p><p>You are just about at the table when Matt looks up and smiles at you, and then stands. “You must be y/n,” he says, reaching out a hand to shake yours. “I’m Matthew Casey, but you can call me Matt.”</p><p>Standing in front of you is a fairly tall man, with dirty blonde hair and green eyes, and a smile that could light up the room! ‘And a gentleman to boot’ you think to yourself as you reach out to shake his hand back. </p><p>Before you’ve hardly gotten yourself seated, the waitress comes to take your drink order. You opt for a Coke, wanting to avoid alcohol for the fear of getting drunk and embarrassing yourself. You are a lightweight when it comes to alcohol.</p><p>You sit for a moment in silence, the realization that the date is really happening making you more nervous. Matt is the first to break the silence. “It’s nice to finally meet you! Julia has not stopped talking about you, and now I have a face to go along with the name. To be honest, I’m not sure I’m a blind date kind of person, but when Julia told me you had already said yes I figured I could give it a try.” Matt flashes you a genuine smile.</p><p>”Wait, did you just say Julia said I had said yes first?” You send him a questioning glance. “Because Julia told me the exact same thing about you! I guess when she gets an idea, there is no stopping her, and she will do whatever it takes,” you say chuckling.</p><p>Matt starts chuckling too. “Yeah, Julia can be very strong willed, but I’m guessing you already knew that!” You laugh, picturing all the times that Julia was <em>very persuasive</em> with you. </p><p>It’s no time at all, and your nerves are completely gone. You and Matt fall into a great conversation about all kinds of things, and he makes you feel totally comfortable. You forget all about how worried you were, and just enjoy the evening.</p><p>”How is it that you can run into a burning building when most people are trying to run out,” you question Matt, as you finish the last bite of your pizza.</p><p>Matt flashes that amazing smile again. “Knowing that lives could be in danger, and that I have the ability to help save people makes it all worth it,” he says honestly. You pause and stare at his face for a moment, feeling total amazement that good honest people like Matt exist in this world. You never thought you’d find someone like that again.</p><p>Matt turns the question around on you. “What made you want to be a cake decorator? Did you always know that’s what you wanted to do?” <br/>
<br/>
A flood of memories come pouring in, all the things that lead to your current job, all the changes you went through, and you feel your heart begin to race. You quickly take those memories and shove them aside, taking a deep breath before answering. “No, I didn’t always know. But a lot of things happened, and let’s just say it’s not the best first date story.” You quickly change the subject, and for now, Matt seems satisfied with your answer.</p><p>After a couple more drinks and some good laughs, Matt looks down at his watch. “I have had a wonderful time tonight, but I think it’s maybe time we head out. We are the last ones here, and they look like they are wanting to close up.” You glance around and notice for the first time that all the other customers have left. You were having such a good time you hadn’t even noticed until now. “Sure,” you reply, and take one last sip of your drink.</p><p>Matt graciously pays for the bill, and you two head for the door. You both stand and look at each other, both a little nervous on what to say next. ‘Do it, just do it’ you say to yourself, ‘do it or you will forever regret it’. You reach into your purse and pull out a napkin, and take a deep breath before being brave and speaking first.</p><p>”So.... um..... well....“ you say, stuttering over your words. “I... I had a really great time tonight. And it might be cliche, but when you were in the washroom I may have written my phone number on this napkin. So, if it’s ok with you, I would like to give it to you, and if you had a great time too and decide to call me again, then you will know how to reach me.”</p><p>Matt smiles and takes the napkin from you. “Thank you. I had a great time too!” Your heart nearly beats out of your chest. Does this mean he might call you back? Matt leans in and gives you a hug, and you say your good nights and head to your vehicles.</p><p>You sit in the driver seat, beaming from ear to ear, and take a moment to breathe. You did it! A successful date after such a long time. Now the hard part. Waiting to see if you get a call from Matt.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
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